Week 7 Flashcards
Why should there be a focus on the health of sub-groups?
Learn how characteristics of certain groups/stereotypes, influence their health status
Identify factors that lead members of a subgroup to be misunderstood i.e. obesity
Understand the pressures that impact the health status of sub-groups
What are the limitations of past health psychology research?
Samples have not been diverse enough or representative
Many conclusions have been misleading i.e. hypertension (gender) clinical trial participants
How have researchers marginalised specific groups?
Specifically exclude certain groups to simplify analysis
Have often found it difficult to recruit members to samples
Members of some groups have been unwilling to participate in research
Inclusion of subgroups in research but treating them all as one i.e. ignoring socioeconomic characteristics of the sample and inadequate sample sizes causing problems with power, means and analysis
What are the pitfalls of relying on general population results?
Generic interventions applied to specific groups are unlikely to work
Health needs a diversity of representation who should not be assumed the same as the dominant culture
What are two differences in heath outcomes between Australia and Japan?
Higher incidence of stomach cancer in Japan compared to Australia
High incidence of breast cancer in Australia compared to Japan
Diet? Lifestyle?
What is the healthy migrant effect?
Migrants have:
lower death and hospitalisation rates
longer life expectancy
lower occurrences of lifestyle-related risk factors
This is time limited: the effect declines the longer the stay in Australia
What are the factors contributing to differentials in migrant health?
Barriers to accessing and using the healthcare system:
Cultural differences
Language barriers
Non-english speaking migrants most affected
Perceived racism
Misunderstandings of health facilities
Women who spoke a language other than English at home participated 6% less than those who only spoke English at home
Psychological factors underlying cultural differences in breast/cervical screening
(Petrak & Sherman)
The longer living in Australia, the more likely to get screened > Lebanese low level of screening
Misattribution of symptoms
Low level of understanding
Assume heredity the most common cause of breast/cervical cancer
What is fatalism?
Belief that health, illness (even death) are predetermined and beyond the control of the individual > influences Chinese and Korean understanding of health and illness
Korean/Chinese > more fatalistic, better health behaviours
Caucasian > more fatalistic, less healthy behaviours
Differences in Urban/Rural Health
70% of people in outer regions are overweight/obese
Total burden of disease is 1.4 times higher in remote and very remote, compared to major cities
Access to healthcare a problem in regional/rural areas
Highest incidence of skin cancers in inner/outer regional
Mortality rates are 1.4 times higher (males) and 1.8 times higher (females) in very remote areas compared to major cities
What factors influence the NSW road toll?
Attitudinal > locals are safer, they won’t crash
Behavioural > speeding, drink driving, fatigue, not wearing seatbelt
Environmental > higher speed roads, hazards i.e. trees
1/3 NSW population lives in regionals
2/3 road fatalities
70% fatalities on country roads are residents
What are the differentials influencing melanoma?
QLD + NSW
Outdoor lifestyle
sun risk awareness
regular skin checks
more clinics available
Northern, Central and Western Australia
More indigenous Australians) low melanoma
VIC + TAS
lower screening rates
Gender differences in health
Males: shorter lifespan, boys have higher infant mortality > more risky behaviours i.e. smoke more, more likely to abuse alcohol/drugs, higher rates of injury and death from car accidents.
Coping style: problem focused
Females: tend to have more health problems and report a greater number of stressors
Coping style: Emotion focus
SES Differences
Lower SES are more likely to be:
born with lower birth weight
die in infancy/childhood
die before 65yo
develop long standing chronic illness
experience restricted activity due to illness
have poor health habits and attitudes
Describe some of the key indigenous population statistics
male life expectancy = 67 (non-indig = 79)
female life expectancy = 72 (non-indig = 84)
500,000 indigenous in Aus
correlations with poverty, lack of education, employment, poor nutrition, substance abuse, lack of health services
3 times more likely to have diabetes
death rate 7 times more likely
What are the leading causes of death for indigenous Australians?
Heart disease
Lower respiratory diseases
Diabetes
Malignant neoplasm of trachea, bronchus and lung
intentional harm/suicide
Prior to colonisation, what was life like for indigenous Australians?
Up to 750,000 population
500 clan groups, each with own clan, dialect, culture, history
Nutritious diet of protein and vegetables
What happened to indigenous Australians at colonisation?
Physical, spiritual, social and cultural changes
Aboriginal people not acknowledged, considered part of the flora and fauna
Moved off traditional hunting and gathering grounds
Spread of new disease i.e. small px, measles, whooping cough
Indigenous mortality and morbidity
Reduction in circulatory diseases but increase in cancer (both have reduced for non-indigenous)
High prevalence of diabetes
Mortality disproportionate by age
Housing is a problem for indigenous populations > 35% live in substandard housing i.e. leaking, overcrowded, basic facilities missing
How are indigenous Australians different as a sub-group?
Poor housing > homelessness
Poor health
Under and unemployed
Poor education participation
Systematic Review Health Behaviours + Intervention (Aus, Canada, NZ)
(Fazelipour + Cunningham)
Need culturally appropriate interventions
Behavioural and cognitive interventions most effective with lifestyle counselling
Community interventions may be more effective than individual-based
Low methodological quality and high inconsistency in data collection (few clinical trials)
Need for bottom-up approach
What are the advantages of focusing on health behaviours /attitudes of sub-groups?
Can help dispel stereotypes/generalisation
Understand the detail behind specific behaviours
Develop interventions tailored to specific groups
What are the disadvantages of focusing on health behaviours of sub-groups?
Studying differences between groups can lead to negative generalisation/stereotypes
A focus between the differences of groups can lead to ignoring the differences within a group
Needs to be a focus on risk factors within groups rather than group membership
